Crop Stop Blog Guest Designer

Hello my friends!

How excited am I to once again be asked to Guest Design for the

CropStop Blog

If you are not familiar with the CropStop Blog or Store, 

you owe it to yourself to pop over and check 'em out!

The card I have created to share with you today can be used for a variety of occasions or just as a note card.  The 'deer' little scene I've created makes me smile ... I hope it makes you smile too!

It all started with the background utilizing inks and embossing.

For the embossing,  I used a Darice 'Cloudy Sky' embossing folder and did a little outlining with a white Gelly Roll pen to help add even more dimension to my clouds.

While the Memory Box 'Deer in the Trees' #99275 die cut was still in the paper, I did my coloring using Spectrum Noir Alcohol Markers.

Isn't this new Memory Box 'Woodland Bridge Frame' (#94039) awesome?  I love the bridge concept and I turned the little deer into a 'fawn' by putting the spots on his rump!  More coloring done with the same Spectrum Noir alcohol markers and inks.

I wanted to create dimension in the scene so I've cut out 3 additional 'Deer in the Trees' die cuts and glued them all together with the colored one on top.

My sentiment is by Sue Wilson but you could use any number of stamp or die sentiments.

Crop Stop Product Used:

•  Tim Holtz Distress Inks
• Darice embossing folder 
• Memory Box dies
• Craft sheet
• Spectrum Noir 
• ATG Gun
• Scor Tape

I hope you've enjoyed today's creation!
Thanks again to the CropStop Team for inviting me to Guest Design with them!!
Please pop over to the CropStop Blog for more wonderful inspiration!
And, be sure to check out their store!!

Challenges to share in:
Brown Sugar September Challenge - All creatures great & small
Die Cuttin' Diva's Challenge - Any Animal
2 Crafty Critter Crazies Challenge #18 - ATG animals

Thanks so much for stopping by and as always . . .

The best Christmas Trees . . .

Afternoon all . . .

I have a card to share that I originally created for another challenge blog but then after giving it more thought, I was afraid it really didn't fit their theme so I decided to share it in the challenge over on the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge.  The theme this time is POP IT UP ... yep, it fits that one!  lol

My image actually came in the mail with a set of cards from one of the companies we send contributions to.  There were three and they are gift tags.  Knowing I wouldn't use them as gift tags, I have them in a container with other sentiment panels waiting to be used on my own cards for the upcoming Fall shows.  I simply gave it a slight trimming then backed it with a white mat and a dark green mat.  

The background design paper is from an old DCWV 12x12 paper pad.   The icicle panel is from another old item ... Martha Stewart punch.  My trees, which have been die cut 3 times, glued together then popped up with dimensional tape are by Memory Box (also old #99240) called Everygreen Trio.

The quote on this tag as you see is by -Andy Rooney ... remember him?

He always had a lot to say and was very 'direct' ... I liked that about him ... 60 Minutes just isn't the same without him!

Challenges to share in:
Watercooler Wednesday Challenge - All Occasions (Christmas)
International Art & Soul Challenge - Nature
Happy Little Stamper September Christmas Challenge - Christmas Option: Trees

Anyways ... I hope you like my card, I'm pretty happy with how it came together!

Have a great day and thanks so much for stopping by for a visit!

As always . . .

Butterfly Decoupage

Hello All and Happy Thursday!

Holy Moly ... these weeks are going by FAST!!!  

Today I've created a card for the challenge over on the Back to Basics Blog

where the theme is Decoupage.

I have had a variety of these 'decoupage' sheet laying on the shelf for several year now and this challenge gave me a good excuse to put one together!

I have used Penny Black 'Painted Blooms' 6x6 designer paper for my background.  

I cut the side down to the width I needed then glued the piece I cut back ontop of that edge so I would have the manufacturer highlighting around the entire piece.  So you can't see the seam, I simply cut a 1/2" strip of hunter green card stock that was laying on the work table and covered over it.  (sneaky huh?  lol)

I also had this Lawn Fawn 'Happy Fall' die cut for another project (then decided not to use it) and thought it would worked well on this card.  What are your thoughts?

I don't know why I've waited so long to put some of these together!

It really came together quickly and I think looks awesome!  I have kept the overall design pretty clean & simple in order to bring all the attention to these lovely butterflies.  

Hope you like it!

 Thanks so much for stopping by and as always . . .

Sisterhood of Crafters - Cozy Plaids

Hello dear friends!

Wow!  Time is sure flying by!

It's already time for a new challenge over

on the Sisterhood of Crafters Blog!

The theme today is a fun one, offered up by hostess Diane ...

Cozy Plaids!

Plaid always reminds me of my Dad!
He wore plaid flannel shirts all the time in the Fall/Winter
and this particular plaid pattern really brought back memories.
Of course, then I thought of his old Farmall Tractor and VIOLA!

After selecting the plaid pattern I wanted from the Ella & Viv  Paper Company called 'Perfectly Plaid Kit', I then chose this fun Die Versions 'Big Tractor' die (DVW-241) and cut it from red card stock.  It has been popped up on my white Tutti Designs Cross Stitched Rectangle panel and then the white panel was popped up onto the navy card stock die cut panel before adhering my focus panel to the plaid background.

 In searching for an appropriate sentiment, I spotted this one in an old Flourishes stamp set titled 'Country Road'
(do you hear John Denver singing??  I do!!  lol) 

After stamping it onto a scrap of white card stock, I die cut the banner using one of the dies in the Sue Wilson Stitched Flags die set.  A few royal blue sequins and my card is ready to post!

I hope you'll come join in our challenge fun at The Sisterhood of Crafters!
My 'sistahs' have created some fabulous creations to help inspire you ... 

be sure to pop over and check them out! 

As always, thanks SO MUCH for taking the time to stop by!

Word Art Wednesday - Guest Designer

Hello friends!

I'm excited to share with you today, a card I created

as the Guest Designer over on the Word Art Wednesday Challenge Blog.

I'm thrilled to have been asked to guest design for them ... thanks Karen!

This is the beautiful verse we are creating with today and I

wanted to bring full focus to these strong words.

After printing this verse, I die cut it using one of the Tutti Designs

Cross Stitch Nesting Rectangle dies.   The design paper I used

is by Echo Park and called 'Have Faith'.   A few little prima

flowers with yellow Nuvo crystal drop centers and my card

is ready to send someone who is in need of some encouraging words.

I hope you'll come join in the challenge and I'm happy

to say I will be guest designing for them again on Sept. 26th.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

As always . . .

A CAS Thanks . . .

Happy Tuesday Everyone!

Today I'm off to my sister's salon for a day of pampering!

But, before I go, I wanted to share with you a CLEAN & SIMPLE card

I created for the Addicted to CAS blog.  

 

Their theme this time is  . . .

I actually was placing an order at the Dies R Us Store when my friend Doni High (Lime Green Giggles) told me about the current challenge theme and since I don't recall having anything in my stash that would fit the theme I quickly added this Lawn Fawn stamp set to my order.  It came in over the weekend, so VIOLA!

As I'm writing up this post and adding my links, I look again at Doni's card for the challenge (of which she's a DT member) and OMG ... I bought the same stamp set she used on her card!  LOL   You can see her card HERE.

AND, I must share with you a little trick I learned from friend Leslie Miller (Running with Scissors).  Leslie is a beautiful colorist and on one of her recent cards she shared this little tip ...

Use your Misti or TH Stamping Platform to stamp your image,

after stamping, leave your stamps in place on the platform.

Once your image is colored & dried, position your stamped image

back on the platform and RE-STAMP it in your black ink.

It gives you those crisp image lines over the coloring that really makes it POP.

                                                                                          

                                                                                                               Thanks Leslie!

I think I'm finally getting the hang of this CLEAN & SIMPLE style!

I don't get as 'anxious' about my design as I once did ... (always wanted to ADD MORE).

Catch you all later after my cut & color as well as pedicure!

Oh yes, as we age, we must do all sorts of things to bring a smile!  LOL

Besides ... it gives me a chance once a month to visit with my Big Sis and catch up!

Challenges to share in:
A2Z Scrapbooking September Challenge - Clean & Simple
Crafty Sentiments Challenge - Dies and/or Punches

 Thanks so much for stopping by and as always . . .

Tutti Designs - Have a Merry Christmas

Happy Monday Friends!
Today I'm sharing a quick & easy holiday card

using one of the newly released dies at the Tutti Designs Store.

This latest release has not only beautiful Christmas dies, but also

Halloween and Fall.  Be sure to pop over and check it out!

Today's card was truly a 10 minute creation!

(could have been 5 minutes if I knew what I wanted to do with the designer paper!  lol)

Here's what I'm talking about ...

My double sided designer paper is 6x6 in size but I make A6 size cards.

To remedy this issue,  I cut the end strip off and was going to adhere it to my cut edge (to make it look complete but then I didn't like the line down the page and didn't want to cover it using another strip of paper or ribbon as I usually do.

SO ...

 

I cut the Santa image from the corner ...  flipped the paper over and used the image in the upper corner vs lower.  Then added my beautiful Have A Merry Christmas die cut.  A few touches of Liquid Applique and my card is ready to go!

As stated ... this is a quick card that I will be making many, many more of since I am in need of a lot of holiday cards this year.  There are a few other sentiment stamps in this release that I will be using in this manner also.  For instance . . .

Joy to the World

 AND

Jingle Bells Jingle all the Way

This will help me get my holiday cards done in a flash!

Here's another look at today's card ...

Please be sure to pop over to the Tutti Designs Store
and check out all of the fabulous dies available.

Need more inspiration? 

The team has something new to share here on the Tutti Designs Blog  
EVERY DAY MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY!  
Pop in often and see for yourself ... what a talented group of designers!!

For your convenience, here are all the Tutti Designs quick links you will need:

Tutti Designs Store

Tutti Designs Pinterest

Tutti Designs Facebook

Tutti Designs Blog

Thanks for stopping in ... have a great week!

As always . . .

Cheapo Dies Guest Designer - Love

Hello Everyone ... Happy Sunday!

Sadly, this will be my last week as guest designer  for the Cheapo Die Blog.

I want to thank them for the privilege!  I have loved every minute.
Their dies are so much fun to create with and very reasonably priced too! 

That's always a GOOD THING!

This week I would like to showcase their Love Wreath die.

Here's how it came together ...

I began by die cutting this die from three different colors.  Green for the leaves, Yellow for the flowers and again in Red for the heart.. Then began snipping and gluing to create my colorful wreath using the green panel as my base.  For added dimension, I decided to die cut two more times from ivory card stock and glue them all together.  Worked beautifully!

To bring added drama to this already beautiful die cut, I've used a fancy die cut frame to the front of my card and added the word Love across the heart.

If your not familiar with Cheapo Dies, you are missing out!!!

Here's a listing of their store, blog & FB links to help you get familiar:

STORE

BLOG

FACEBOOK

Thanks Cheapo Dies for having me as your Guest Designer!

And thanks to all of you for stopping by today!  

Here's wishing you a FABULOUS week ahead!

As always ...

Other products used:
Dies:  Tutti Designs 'Love Word Set', Sue Wilson 'Frames & Tags - Poppy' (CED4342)
Accessories:  Red Stickles

CAS Christmas

Hello Friends and Happy Weekend!

BFF Diane (Nellie's Nest) and I were talking the other day and we decided to once again challenge each other by creating something for the same challenge.  Diane chose our challenge for today and it is the sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches Blog.  Here's their sketch inspiration . . .

Now, anyone who knows me, knows I struggle with the CAS (clean & simple) design style.  So, when I first looked at this sketch I thought 'Holy Smokes ... what am I going to do with this?'  Then I took a peek at the DT samples ... they were so helpful and instantly eased my mind!  (You'd think this would be a snap! )   NOT!

Here's what I came up with  . . .

I have had this beautiful (OLD) Stampin' Up holiday paper pack for several years now and thought it would make the perfect background for this beautiful Yvonne Creations Holly Jolly Music Border die.

I've die cut my image three times.  Did a little coloring using Spectrum Noir alcohol markers for the top panel before gluing them all together for added dimension.  VIOLA ... another holiday card ready for the upcoming Christmas season.

Now, I must confess!  I will probably add 'a sentiment or something' in that blank space before I actually send it to anyone but we will see ... I will try to keep my hands off of it and just add a sentiment to the inside!  Ugh ... CAS is so difficult ... I can think of so many things I'd like to add!  LOL

Be sure to pop over to Diane's (Nellie's Nest) blog and see her rendition of this same sketch.    

Well that's my share for today ... hope you've enjoyed your visit.

Have a GREAT day and as always . . .